Storm Dumps 1.5 Inches Of Rain

A furious thunderstorm that ``came from nowhere`` sent Sunday afternoon boaters scurrying for shore and dumped more than 1.5 inches of rain at Palm Beach International Airport, officials said.

``It was pure hell today,`` said Officer George Workman of the U.S. Coast Guard station at Lake Worth Inlet. ``We were flooded with rescue calls.``

Workman said the storm caught boaters by surprise and transformed a tranquil sunny afternoon into a dark and rainy nightmare within minutes.

``Everyone was trying like crazy to get into shore,`` he said.

The fierce winds and rough seas capsized three boats, Workman said, but no one was injured in any of the mishaps. He said two small boats capsized close to shore. One was a sailboat that was quickly righted, the other a small power boat that was towed to shore.

Workman said a small fishing boat capsized about 40 miles offshore, but the crew was rescued by friends in a nearby boat. The capsized boat was not saved.

``It`s still floating out there,`` Workman said. ``It`s history.``

The storm arrived about 3:30 p.m. and hit hardest in the West Palm Beach area, according to Jim Scholten of the National Weather Service.

Scholten said 1.53 inches of rain were recorded at the airport from 3:30 p.m. until 4:25 p.m.

The downpour brought the official June rainfall for the county to 4.72 inches, Scholten said, still well below the 7.92 inches normally expected for the month.

Scholten said a 45-mile-per-hour wind gust was recorded at the airport, but ``suprisingly, it didn`t cause any damage.`` He said pea-sized hail was reported in Boca Raton, but the stones were too small to cause any damage.